Abstract
To determine the proximate consequences of the limited breeding distribution of the critically endangered Waved Albatross (Phoebastria irrorata), we present continuous breeding season GPS tracks highlighting differences in behaviour, destinations, and distances travelled between three distinct colonies: two in Galápagos and one closer to the South American continent on Isla de la Plata, where a small number of pairs nest. Accelerometer data paired with GPS locations allowed operational classifications of Waved Albatross behaviour. All birds from Galápagos travelled eastward to the continental shelf and foraged southward along the Peruvian coast. Birds from Isla de la Plata made more and shorter foraging trips and used habitat north of the destinations of Galápagos birds. La Plata birds foraged in areas through which Galápagos birds commuted, and had slower average flight speeds and shorter commutes. Overall, albatrosses from La Plata might operate under a consistently lower return but they also incur lower costs compared to birds from Galápagos, which take fewer trips involving longer time investment. Galápagos birds may be able to forage more effectively based on more abundant or more profitable food patches in those highly productive areas. Foraging destinations of birds from the two Galápagos colonies were similar and overlapped areas that presented localized mortality risk from artisanal fisheries in previous years. This study, performed across the species’ breeding range, reveals the different foraging distribution of La Plata albatrosses and the potential conservation value of this small colony in terms of maintenance of spatial diversity and behavioural plasticity.
Zusammenfassung
Kleines Verbreitungsgebiet und klar abgegrenzte Verteilung einer Satelliten-Brutkolonie des vom Aussterben bedrohten Galapagosalbatros
Um die unmittelbaren Folgen der begrenzten Brutverbreitung des vom Aussterben bedrohten Galapagosalbatros (Phoebastria irrorata) zu ermitteln, stellen wir hier kontinuierliche GPS-Streckenaufzeichnungen zur Brutzeit vor, welche Unterschiede im Verhalten, den Flugzielen und den jeweils zurückgelegten Wegen zwischen drei separaten Kolonien aufzeigen: zwei auf Galapagos und eine näher am südamerikanischen Kontinent gelegene auf der Isla de la Plata, wo eine kleine Anzahl von Paaren nistet. Die Kombination der Daten von Beschleunigungsmessern mit GPS-Ortsdaten ermöglichte eine operative Klassifizierung des Verhaltens der Galapagosalbatrosse. Alle Vögel aus Galapagos flogen ostwärts zum kontinentalen Schelf und suchten ihre Nahrung südwärts entlang der peruanischen Küste. Vögel von der Isla de la Plata machten häufigere und kürzere Nahrungssuchflüge und nutzten dabei nördlicher gelegene Habitate als die Vögel von Galapagos. Die Vögel von La Plata jagten in Gegenden, die von den Galapagos-Vögeln überflogen wurden, hatten im Schnitt geringere Fluggeschwindigkeiten und legten kürzere Strecken zurück. Insgesamt können die Albatrosse von La Plata mit beständig niedrigeren Beuteerträgen auskommen, haben dafür aber auch einen geringeren Aufwand als die Vögel von Galapagos, die weniger Flüge machen, dafür aber mehr Zeit investieren. Die Galapagos-Vögel sind möglicherweise effektiver bei der Nahrungssuche, aufgrund reichhaltigerer oder profitablerer Nahrungsquellen in diesen hochproduktiven Regionen. Die Vögel der beiden Galapagos-Kolonien flogen zur Nahrungssuche zu ähnlichen Zielen, welche sich mit Regionen überschnitten, die in den Vorjahren aufgrund von Kleinfischerei ein lokal begrenztes Mortalitätsrisiko aufwiesen. Diese über das Brutgebiet der Art ausgedehnte Studie belegt die abweichende Verteilung der La Plata-Albatrosse bei der Nahrungssuche und den potenziellen Erhaltungswert dieser kleinen Kolonie für die Aufrechterhaltung räumlicher Diversität und der Plastizität des Verhaltens.
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Acknowledgments
We thank the Galápagos National Park Service and the Ministry of the Environment of Ecuador for permission to work in the parks; Machalilla National Park, the Charles Darwin Research Station, Charles Darwin Foundation, and TAME Airlines for logistical support; Mathias Berger of Movebank for the albatross animation; Franz Kümmeth for technical support; and anonymous reviewers for comments on an earlier draft. We also thank Christian Sevilla and rangers for assistance with albatross monitoring. This material is based upon work supported by National Science Foundation grant no. DEB 0842199 to DJA, Max-Planck Society and State of Baden-Wuerttemberg Innovation funding to MW, and a Colorado State University International Programs grant to KPH.
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Communicated by C. Barbraud.
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Awkerman, J.A., Cruz, S., Proaño, C. et al. Small range and distinct distribution in a satellite breeding colony of the critically endangered Waved Albatross. J Ornithol 155, 367–378 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-013-1013-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-013-1013-9